Sunday, December 9, 2007

Inanam, Menggatal among accident-prone areasKOTA KINABALU: Inanam and Menggatal are among the areas listed as accident-prone areas here with over half of the fatal mishaps happening in these two places. As of November, of the 36 deaths in the City, 22 people were killed in accidents in Inanam and Menggatal. Acting City Traffic and Public Order Chief, ASP Mohd Nordin Mohd Noor, in disclosing this yesterday, said 11 of those fatal accidents involved pedestrians. “This is unique in Sabah; normally in other states pedestrians are the lowest in the list of victims in mishaps but over here, they made up the bulk of it,” he said in response to a question on the frequent mishaps in Menggatal and nearby areas by a resident during a crime prevention dialogue at the Menggatal community hall, Saturday. A resident had voiced out his concern over the big number of mishaps taking place in the areas, asking whether it was due to the lack of enforcement or the bad road conditions. Mohd Nordin explained that over 80 per cent of the time, motorists were to be blamed for the mishaps. “Most of the mishaps occurred because of the attitude of motorists. There were many instances when they were found driving under the influence of alcohol.” He stressed that the road conditions or enforcement aspect should not be blamed for the situation. “The enforcement cannot look after the safety of every motorist all the time. There were many occasions where we found drivers only putting on their seatbelts when they spotted the police or during roadblocks. This shows that they are more worried about getting booked rather than looking after their safety,” he said. As a solution to this, Mohd Nordin said they are creating an awareness among the young people on the importance of road safety. “Frankly, it is hard to tell older motorists to change their attitude but it is not too late to instil a sense of responsibility in the young …we hope they will learn and abide by traffic regulations at all times,” he said. On another issue, Mohd Nordin said the police are trying their best to ensure that the people’s needs are met. He was responding to a comment by a Telipok resident who felt the City Police had failed to do a follow-up on a report he lodged in August. The complainant said the thieves not only carted his belongings away but also parts of the house like the zinc roofs and planks. “Since the day I made the report, I have not been informed if it has been solved ... it is preferably we are informed on the progress of the investigation,” he added.Acting City Police Chief, Superintendent Rowell Marong, who led the dialogue, later responded that he does not deny the police have its weaknesses. “But sometimes my personnel could fail to understand the gravity of the crime and subsequently the matter did not reach the higher ups,” he said, adding that he understands the public’s frustrations but the police are trying their best even with very limited manpower. He also urged the public to understand the problems they face and be patient. Also present at the dialogue were CID Senior Investigating Officer II, ASP Mohd Nazri Abd Razak , City Marine Police Commanding Officer, ASP Fauzi Ibrahim, City Anti-Narcotics chief, ASP Abd Halim Ahmad and Commercial Crime Department investigating officer Chief Inspector Abang Faizal.

Azlan’s case probe completed, handed over to DPP office: CPKOTA KINABALU:The Deputy Public Prosecutor is expected to decide on the next move on the baffling death of 24-year-old Azlan Amir Kahar last week. Police have turned in all the investigation notes concerning the high profile case to the DPP’s office, according to Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Noor Rashid Ibrahim. “All concerns and doubts raised by the family were noted by us and we have explained it to the family,” he said yesterday. “We have completed our investigations and the matter is now in the hands of the DPP. The next course of action is up to them.” Rashid said this when responding to the “unhappiness” of Azlan’s mother Datin Aminah Ambrose who questioned the police investigations that allegedly failed to look at the various injuries found on Azlan’s body. Aminah is the wife of Banggi assemblyman Datuk Amir Kahar Tun Mustapha, who is the son of Sabah former Chief Minister, the late Tun Datu Mustapha Harun. The shocking death of Azlan sent shockwaves through the local community, more so when the tragedy was said to have taken place in the home of his fiancee, a fellow student and part- time model. The 21-year-old fiancee was remanded for five days by police after she lodged a police report and was later released on police bail. Police have said that Azlan died of heart failure following a post-mortem, but his family is disputing the finding, as they claimed that the victim’s body bore bruise marks all over and there were gashes in the back of his head. Rashid said that based on the postmortem report, the injuries sustained were not the cause of death though the victim was assaulted. “It will be up to the DPP to decide whether to hold an inquest or charge her for assault. I think things would become clearer then,” he said, adding that police classification of the case remains under Section 302 of the Penal Code.

Terrible bruises on Azlan’s body: MumPENAMPANG:Datin Aminah Ambrose, the mother of Datu Azlan, said she received a call on December 1 from the mother of Azlan’s fiancee that her son was suffering from a stroke and he was in pain but still alive and in the hospital. However, when Aminah arrived at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH), she saw Azlan’s body was covered with a cloth and the hospital staff informed her that her son was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital at 7. l5am. “Why give me hope to see my son alive when actually he had died? Why did the mother of my son’s fiancee call me at 7.38am, saying that ‘Azlan is sick, please come to the hospital quickly, his face is pale’?” Aminah asked. “I want to know the truth as to what really happened to my son and why she (fiancee’s mother) lied to me,” the grieving mother said in an interview at her residence, yesterday. According to Aminah, she was aware of the time when the mother of her son’s fiancee called her, as it was recorded in her hand phone. “At the mortuary, seeing that my son had left us and nothing could be done, I kissed his forehead and touched his palm but they felt so cold like ice, not even a slight warmth on his skin. Any normal body of a person who has just passed away would not have felt so cold. It looked like my son had passed away for quite some time,” she said. “When Sheena’s mother (mother of Azlan’s fiancee) had left us, I felt concerned about my son’s condition... I opened the white cloth slowly that covered him and noticed scratches on some part of his face as if caused by nails. “I was shocked and continued opening the white cloth and was so surprised to see wounds on the head, at the back, and terrible bruises all over his body and his arms... my God, his arms had bruises that left some kind of holes on the skin and dry blood. To me, it looked like something painful had gone into his arms. “When I checked his legs, I noticed something which was so saddening,as if something had been done to his two legs... it was so shocking! How could he had all those bruises, dried blood and marks if he only had a stroke only, tell me how?” Asked if she saw the sign of blood on arrival at the mortuary, Aminah said, “At first, I did not see any sign of blood because his body was covered with the cloth, and his shirt was so clean, not a drop of blood. But after uncovering the cloth slowly, after a while, I saw stains of blood coming from the back of his head, prompting me to call the doctor saying, ‘doctor, my son was battered!’ Asked if anyone else noticed the bloodstains, she said three other persons also saw them. Aminah said she had immediately asked her niece to take photographs of what they noticed on Azlan’s body, and the photographs were shown to the Borneo Post. “I have been informed by the authorities that the case is still under investigation... I am hoping for justice, please,” she said. Datuk Amir Kahar Aminah’s husband said: “Even someone who are much older, for example, over60 would still have a chance to stay conscious after a stroke. My son was healthy and never had stroke, and he was just 24. “When Azlan was still with us and when Sheena visited us, I noticed Azlan was quite gentle towards her, opening the door for her and taking the chair for her. He treated her nicely. He was a gentleman,” said the father. According to Aminah, Azlan left the house around 1pm on the day he was reported dead. “Before he left, as usual we were in the computer room talking happily. He always prepared all kinds of nutritious shakes for the family, especially vanilla and chocolate shakes, and on that day he excitedly prepared some and served us. He was a very loving brother and a gentle son,” the mother said “I remembered that last day while he was making the shake, his fiancee kept calling him.., then he left, that was the last time I saw him alive,” she said, while showing Azlan’s neat room with a book, some cupboards and a TV beside his bed.